All you can heathen!

by JACK OATMON

Both la fête St-Jean and the summer solstice are upon us and, as with nearly every other cultural landmark, Montreal will celebrate this weekend by getting stinking drunk, dancing like heathens and arguing about politics. You could pretty much just stumble in any random direction and run into a great party this weekend, but for the discerning lowlife, consider this list of fine events, which I take to be la crème de la crème.

Tonight, Thursday, June 21—the longest day of the year—you can catch 1-Speed Bike getting quirky at Zoobizarre. As well, Fricoti and Stephen Beaupré will be at Salon Daomé, laying out some funky, minimal grooves and lounge beats. For those who like their bleeping house beats a bit noisier and sweatier, get Smash TV and Chick Simon down at Parking.

On Friday night, the eye of the storm between the solstice and St. Jean, you might wanna get some rest and prepare yourself for the oncoming madness. Saturday looks like it’s going to be a definite bender, starting early in the day, continuing on through the wee hours and, if Mister Jack Daniels has anything to say about it, the not-so-wee-anymore hours as well. Piknic Électronik marks its fifth anniversary with a double edition starting Saturday. Rock-electro is the order of the day, with DJ sets by Frigid, Nu Ravers on the Block and also NYC’s frantic electro trio, le Tigre. After that, you’ve got an absurd amount of choice for the evening. The U.K.’s Elite Force will be concocting a smooth mix of ambient sounds, slick breaks and heavy-duty house jams at Cabaret Juste Pour Rire. Across town at Café Chaos, diehard drum & bass fans can get a heavy dose thereof from a handful of local DJs. The real treat on Saturday will be an all-night loft rager set to go down at the spot with the huge rooftop balcony near the Old Port where Diplo played last summer and the Justice afterparty happened. The jam will feature L.A.’s Guns n’ Bombs as guest DJs. Keep your ears to the coatcheck for info on that one.

The next day, Sunday, June 24, virtually everyone in the entire city will likely have pounding headaches, torn underwear, oozing wads of hangover scum in their eyes and mysteriously bruised kneecaps, but if you feel the need to drag yourself into the sunlight, the warriors will get to see Josh Wink, Fred Everything and Millimetrik at the second Piknic of the weekend.

The Banger of the Week is “Clubhoppn,” off the EP of the same name by Parisian electro space-alien Para One.

Q: Are we not men? A: We are Disco!
jack.oatmon@gmail.com